Branching Out
by SR89
Summary: This is the sequel to my first story 'Family', HouseCameron, kind of fluffy. How does life progress for House, Cameron and Amy...House's teenage daughter?
1. Chapter 1

Greg sat back on the sofa, contemplating the lack of noise in the house. In the ten months since Allison had moved in, though he often complained about it, it was rare not to have at least some noise. Quimby leapt up next to him on the sofa, stretching out with her paws pressed against his leg. He scratched affectionately behind her ear. He hadn't wanted the cat, he hadn't wanted a pet at all but Amy and Allison, using the tag-team tactics that they had developed virtually in the first week Allison had moved in, had managed to railroad him into adopting the tortoiseshell bundle of fur that called itself a cat. And he was glad of it's company now, though if he was asked he would definitely deny any distinct liking for the animal.

The ringing of the doorbell distracted him. Quimby jumped off the sofa and padded her way towards the window, hopping deftly onto the sill. Greg was slower and more relaxed and by the time he opened the door the bell had rung another three times.

"Hi." Wilson said, stepping through the door and shaking snow off of his jacket. He held out a bag of Chinese take-out, which Greg took, and set his overnight bag down at the bottom of the staircase. He followed Greg into the kitchen.

"You nervous?" he asked.

"Why would I be nervous?" Greg answered, opening the bag of food and handing Wilson a container. Looking down at his own food, Duck Lo Mein, he smiled, remembering the first night he and Allison spent together.

"Oh I don't know because tomorrow you're-" Wilson's words were cut off by the ringing of the phone. Greg left Wilson in the kitchen and went through to the hallway to answer it. Caller ID identified 'Amy Cell'.

* * *

"Hey." He answered.

"Are you sure about this?" Allison's voice came down the telephone. He could imagine her clutching it desperately to her ear. He sighed,

"For the hundredth time, yes."

"Really? Cos if you aren't, we can just cancel."

"For the hundred-and-first time, Allie. We're doing this. Tomorrow." He said, rolling his eyes but smiling all the same.

"Ok." He heard her sigh with relief, then heard Amy's voice in the background.

"Allie? Is that my cell? Did you call Dad?" Greg heard Allison answer 'no' and laughed. "Allison. Give me the phone. God you are driving me _crazy_! Give me the phone and go and paint your nails. Because I said so. You aren't supposed to be talking to him, not until tomorrow. Go!" There was static on the phone, which Greg assumed was from Allison relinquishing the cell. Seconds later he heard Amy's voice.

"I tried to stop her calling, again, but she's going crazy over here. Anyone would think you were plotting a kidnap, not getting married."

* * *

"I still can't believe we're doing this. Actually doing this." Allison said quietly, staring at her reflection in the floor-length mirror.

"Yes, you are actually doing this. Now hold still before I stick you with this pin." Amy muttered, trying to fix the veil into place.

"Oh Alison you look perfect." Blythe House stood proudly next to Gloria Cameron, both gazing adoringly at the bride. The photographer tried to position Allison infront of the window to get some pre-ceremony shots. Amy quickly grabbed Allison's bouquet from the dresser and wrapped Allison's shaking hands around the stems.

"Allie. Look at me. He loves you, you're getting married. Now for goodness sake look happy!" she said, smoothing the veil around Allison's shoulders. The dress was ivory silk, strapless and it fell effortlessly to the ground, accentuating her tiny waist.

"Ok then. If we could have the bride and bridesmaid together for a few shots, then add the mothers?" the photographer said. He was an experienced photographer and he knew that in cases like these it really was best to try and move things along.

"Amy," Allison whispered out of the corner of her mouth, whilst smiling for the camera.

"Yes?" Amy answered, turning her head to look at Allison and earning a "Good idea, turn and look at each other. Look natural." from the photographer, who despite his experience was more than just a little bit pretentious.

"This dress..."

"Once again, no you cannot see the bump." Amy hissed through her smile

Allison looked back at Amy, and suddenly wrapped her arms tightly around the teenager. Amy felt tiny tears prick her eyelids, and blinked rapidly. She couldn't risk ruining her make-up.

"Congratulations." She whispered.

"And if we can add the mothers into the shot, please?" The photographer said.

* * *

"...and so, ladies and gentlemen, would you all please join me in raising your glasses to the happy couple; Allison and Greg!" Wilson raised his glass as the words 'Allison and Greg' were chorused by the two hundred wedding guests. Greg leaned over and whispered into Allison's ear.

"I love you Mrs House."

"I love you too Mr House."

* * *

"Okay, so call me when you land, and then don't call me for the rest of the honeymoon." Amy said, hugging Allison and then Greg.

"If you need anything out contact numbers are by the phone," Allison reminded her, while Greg tried to usher her into the limo that was taking them to the airport. They had been married for exactly 17 hours and were about to head off for two weeks in China; Allison's choice.

"Okay. Have fun. Take pictures. And look after the bump!" Amy burbled as Greg shut the door and rounded the back of the car. She clapped a hand over her mouth but it was too late.

"The bump?" Blythe House and Gloria Cameron asked in unison. The sound of Greg's car door shutting diverted their attention and they waved the limo off.

"Now young lady...what exactly did you mean by 'the bump'?" Blythe asked. Amy giggled nervously.

"Well, it's kind of a long story..." she muttered weakly...


	2. Chapter 2

_Six months earlier..._

"Duck Lo Mein for three...as ordered." Amy said, bringing the hot take-out through to the kitchen. Allison was perched on the kitchen work-top, legs wrapped around Greg. They were locked in a passionate embrace.

"Woah!" Amy said, clapping a hand tightly over her eyes. "I thought we agreed no PDA?". Greg and Allison broke apart, with one last chaste kiss. "That's better." Amy held up the take-out.

"Happy six-month anniversary!" she said, handing out the chopsticks and setting the bag down beside Allison on the counter. Allison reached down and slid open a drawer, selecting a fork and handing it over. Amy swapped the fork for a container of Chinese.

"Oh hey guess what?" she said. Greg raised an eyebrow.

"What?"

"Mr Huang's son is getting married!" Amy said. "Mr Huang included an extra box of fortune cookies, 'to ease my pain'!" she laughed. Allison stifled a giggle and Greg pinched her kneecap.

"Ow!" she squealed, wriggling out from his grasp. She slid down from the counter and stood infront of him. In a smooth practised gesture Greg wrapped his arms around her waist and she leaned easily against him.

"What is with you two tonight?" Amy asked.

"Nothing." Allison answered immediately, and Amy looked doubtful.

"Whatever." She muttered, sliding the third container of takeout across the counter. She snapped open her chopsticks, and using one hand deftly twirled her long hair into a bun, before using the other hand to secure it with the chopsticks.

"You never told me why you do that." Allison stated, as she snapped open her own chopsticks and dug around in her own food.

"Well, for one thing, I can't use chopsticks to save my life. And for another, well I don't know why they end up in my hair. I guess it's just a habit. Kind of like you two with the whole glued at the hip thing." Amy smirked. "Are we going to eat in the living room?"

"Yeah." Greg answered, grabbing his own food in one hand, and Allison's own hand in the other. Amy lead the way, switching the stereo on as she passed it.

* * *

A few hours later and Greg, Allison and Amy were sat sprawling on the floor of their living room, listening to jazz music on the stereo and flicking through the present Amy had made as a half-year anniversary present; a photograph album with pictures from the past six months.

"I like this one best." Greg said, flipping back a few pages to the photograph of Amy and Allison together at Amy's 17th birthday party held a few months earlier in the conference room at the hospital.

* * *

It had been a surprise; totally Allison's idea. She had organised everything, even managing to invite some of Amy's friends from Boston down for the day. While she had been attending classes at Harvard Amy had lived with one of the professors and her family; and had become close to the woman's twin daughters – Claire and Madeline. Amy's face when she saw her friends had made the effort worthwhile.

Wilson had declared himself photographer that day, and had managed to capture dozens of great shots. Greg's favourite showed his two girls perched on the edge of the table in the conference room, heads together (the pair of them wearing brightly coloured party hats) and sharing some secret joke that to this day they refused to include him in.

That was the day that Allison and Greg had become public. They didn't mean to; Amy's birthday fell three weeks after Allison had moved in and they had wanted to keep it a secret a little while longer. But Amy, in a flurry of excitement at opening a Vettriano print from Dr. Cuddy, had let the cat out of the bag. She had held it in Allison's view and asked whether she thought it would look better in the living room or in the hallway. The conference room had fallen silent; Doctors Foreman, Chase and Cuddy stood with mouths open as the underlying meaning of her words sunk in. Even the rest of the guests; a few of the paeds nurses, and a couple ex-patients Amy had grown friendly with, had stared at Allison and Greg – frozen in shock. Amy had clapped a hand over her mouth as soon as she had finished speaking.

"I'm sorry! I forgot!" she had whispered, eyes wide. But Greg had burst into laughter while Allison dissolved into giggles; both behaviours totally uncharacteristic of them whilst at work, and the sudden change had diffused the frozen atmosphere in the room.

"How long has this been going on?" Foreman had asked, and he couldn't believe it when Amy told him 'three weeks'. No-one could quite believe it, but they had to when, at the end of the party, Allison and Greg had been discovered in his darkened office in what could only be described as a 'compromising position'.

* * *

"I think I like this one best." Amy flipped the pages all the way to the front of the album, to the picture she had insisted that they took...even though all three of them had known it was cheesy and clichéd. The picture showed the three of them stood together on the steps of the house, two days after Allison had moved in. Greg stood in the middle, his arms around each of his girls. They were laughing; on the day it had been taken the skies had been dark and ominous, and in the five minutes that the grey skies had cleared Amy had insisted that they take the picture.The photograph couldn't show it, but across the street from them their neighbour; an elderly lady who owned a few dozen cats and called 'my babies' had come out to watch them; shaking a rolling pin at the crazy people; prompting hysteria between all three of them.

"I think I like that one best as well." Allison mused, leaning against Greg. He kissed her cheek, whispering something into her ear. She nodded a response.

"Amy, there's something, we'd like to talk to you. Well, no, I mean, there's something we have to tell you." Allison stumbed over her words, the enormity of the situation and the copious amounts of wine she had drunk over the evening combining into a feeling of general stupidity. Amy eyed Allison slightly cautiously.

"Well you're drunk, so you can't be pregnant." She assessed, slightly warily, prompting an objectionary "I am _not!_" from Allison.

"Not what, drunk or pregnant?" Amy giggled. Greg cleared his throat.

"We're getting married." He announced. Amy was silent for a moment, her eyes flickering between her dad and Allison. Seconds passed and it was as if the air in the room was frozen, and then suddenly Amy had broken into an enormous grin, squealed 'Congratulations!' and launched herself at them, wrapping her arms around them both.

"Have you set a date? Can I be a bridesmaid? Can I choose my dress?" she asked excitedly, earning a small groan from Greg; Allison was caught up in the moment.

"Not yet, but we were thinking sometime in November, possibly December. Of course you are a bridesmaid and yes, you can choose what you wear!"

"Hate to break this up but we all have work in the morning." Greg eased to his feet; knees stiff from sitting on the floor. "Hello? Anyone at home?" he waved a hand in front of his fiancée's face, and then his daughters. Both were oblivious and he sighed, grabbing his cane – he only used it occasionally now. Allison and Amy; displaying expert tag-team tactics had convinced him to participate in regular physical therapy, so that even when the ketamine began to wear off he still had almost full use of his leg, and minimal pain.

* * *

As he headed wearily up the stairs, he could hear Amy and Allison in the living room, excitedly discussing china patterns and floral arrangements.

* * *

Thank you to everyone who reviewed...it's great to know I have readers...and even better that you like my stuff!!! Please review, as always. x 


	3. Chapter 3

"ONE MONTH TIL WEDDING" screamed the red writing on the calendar. Allison's eyes were looking at a different date however. She studied the red mark four days earlier and suddenly felt her stomach jolt. Thoughts rushed through her head.Grabbing her purse from the counter she called to Greg and Amy, who were in the living room, "Just popping to the store. Back in a sec." They called 'bye' and she heard the tinkling of the piano keys; Greg had decided (the reasons behind which, she had no idea) to teach Amy to play. It was taking longer than either of them had suspected, but neither minded. Shutting the door, Allison felt a wave of nausea rush over her. Steadying herself against the doorjamb she took several deep breaths, and when it had passed hurried to her car, parked in the drive.

* * *

It was blue. Scanning the packet it couldn't have been clearer – blue was positive. Blue was pregnant. Blue was scary and unexpected and ... blue meant a baby. She twirled the test round her fingers, thinking. A baby was huge. The wedding was only a month away, what would people think if she turned up with a bump visible beneath her wedding dress? She sat down on the closed lid of the toilet, her left hand pressed to her forehead. Her right hand strayed to her abdomen as dates and numbers rushed through her mind. She was four days late, something she hadn't even noticed until she had looked at the calendar. She hadn't put on any weight; she would have noticed at her dress fittings. Doing the math, she guessed she was somewhere around 8 to 10 weeks.

A knock on the door jolted her out of her thoughts. "Allison? Are you in there?" Amy called through the wood.

"Yeah just a second." She called back. She slipped the test in her pocket, she ran her hands underneath the faucet, wincing as the cold water hit her skin.

"Why were you using my bathroom?" Amy questioned, an eyebrow raised.

"Your dad was in our one." Allison answered, thinking to herself; "I didn't want him walking in on me."

"Are you ok? You look nauseated." Amy persisted, following Allison down the stairs.

"I'm fine. I just didn't sleep well yesterday." Too much had been on her mind as she psyched herself up to take the test. It had sat in her purse all through dinner with Wilson, calling her and taunting her.

"Allison." Amy caught hold of her soon-to-be stepmother's wrist, stopping her walking into the kitchen where her father was making breakfast. She looked hard at Allison. "Are you pregnant?" She asked quietly. Hearing those three words suddenly made the situation seem real, and Allison found herself smiling. Amy wrapped her in a huge, happy hug.

"Your dad doesn't know yet." Allison warned, remembering the last secret Amy had been trusted to keep.

"Tell him now." Amy begged. "Please, before work. I want to see his face." Allison couldn't help but laugh at Amy's excitement; she felt butterflies replace the nausea in her stomach.

"Later." Amy's face fell, but lit up again when Allison proceeded to explain how she was going to tell him.

* * *

They were sat at the table, after eating dinner. Greg was reading the evening paper while Allison and Amy were talking (as they had done for the past three months) about the wedding. Allison's nausea had almost vanished as soon as she had eated breakfast. She had managed to avoid the coffee and the eggs; both smells suddenly making her want to retch. Greg had raised an eyebrow when she refused the coffee, and she had concocted some tale about wanting to detox in advance of the wedding. He had shrugged and let it go.

"Anything interesting?" Allison asked, winking at Amy across the table.

"Bunch of kids raised money for some charity, someone died, someone had a kid," Greg shrugged, setting the paper down on the table. He turned the page while simultaneously taking a sip of his beer. And then, seeing a bright yellow post-it on the page, he almost choked.

The room was silent, both Allison and Amy studying Greg as he read, re-read and re-re-read the small amount of information that had been scribbled onto the note. He glanced at Allison, who smiled slightly, almost shyly.

"Really?" he asked, his voice coming out strangely weak. He cleared his throat as Allison nodded.

"Three out of three tests were positive." She affirmed. Greg stood up and walked the few steps towards her chair. Taking her hand he pulled her up to stand close in front of him. He could feel her holding her breath; her pulse was racing underneath his fingers. And suddenly his arms were wrapped around her and he was spinning her around; both of them laughing.

He set her back down again, steadying her with a reassuring hand on the small of her back. "Does she know?" Greg murmured out of the corner of his mouth.

"Of course I do!" Amy said indignantly, "I was with her when she took the second and third tests! I'm gonna be a big sister! You guys are going to be parents."

Allison wrapped an arm around Greg's waist; leaning into him. She fit perfectly against him. She looked Amy in the eyes.

"We already are."

* * *

The next day Greg presented Allison with a gift, wrapped in pale yellow tissue paper and green ribbon. Inside was a book, 'Baby's First Year'. On the first page, she saw, he had stuck the yellow post-it;

"We're having a baby."


	4. Chapter 4

"It looks like a smudge." Greg insisted, staring at the blurry picture on the screen in front of him.

"Look, that's the head, and that's the nose, and that bit there is the spine." Amy said, reaching over and pointing at the screen.

"I know that. But it still looks like a smudge."

"Is there anyway you can tell the sex?" Allison asked from her position on the bed. She had insisted to both Greg and Amy that she didn't want to know whether the baby was a boy or a girl; but seeing him or her on the screen...it made her desperately want to know.

"I can try. But at 16 weeks it may still be a little difficult. Just a second." The newly qualified OB doctor who was doing the ultrasound, Dr. Harvey, manouevered the scanner over Allison's abdoment. Amy squealed as she saw the baby react to the movement.

"I'll be right back. Nothing to worry about" Dr. Harvey said suddenly, getting up and leaving the room. Hearing those four immortal words;" _nothing to worry about_" changed the happy, excitable atmosphere in the room to one of almost terror. All three pairs of eyes studied the screen intently; searching for whatever it was that was supposedly wrong with the baby. Greg took the scanner and ran it over his wife's stomach.

"I don't see anything," Allison murmered, her voice full of worry. Greg searched the screen for even the tiniest abnormality, but it was Amy who practically yelled 'Stop!" when she realised the reason for Dr. Harvey's disappearance.

"Look!" she said, pressing a few buttons on the keyboard and enlarging the picture.

"I don't see anything!" Allison repeated, but Greg spotted what it was and Allison felt his hand tightly squeeze hers.

"Right...here," Amy said pointing to the screen.

"Oh my..." Allison breathed, finally catching on to what her husband and step-daughter were showing her...

By the time Dr. Harvey returned with a resident, to confirm her suspicions about the House baby, all three members of the family were grinning as if they were about to burst. On the screen, sleeping peacefully, were two perfectly formed babies.

* * *

"How about Chloe?" Allison suggested.

"I dated a Chloe once." Greg mused.

"And Chloe's off the list." Allison replied instantly. They were sat around the kitchen table; remnants of their meal pushed to the side and replaced with what seemed like every baby name book ever published. Interspersed between the books were print outs with the most popular baby names of the past year, decade and century. Finally, in the middle of the table was a list of the names that all three of them had agreed on. Currently, the list showed four names.

"How about Jack?" Greg thought aloud.

"I like Jack..." Allison hesitated slightly.

"But...?" Greg asked.

"I dated a guy called Jack." Allison couldn't have looked more bashful if she had tried and the look on Greg's face made Amy burst into a fit of giggles. When she had recovered she said,

"I like Ben for my brother, and Lucy for my sister." Allison and Greg looked at Amy, then at each other, contemplating the names.

"Lucy House," Greg mused, testing the words

"Ben House." Allison added. Smiles spread over both their faces.

"I think we have our names."

* * *

I know it's short...but the next chapter will be longer. I've got exams and stuff at the moment, so this is my relaxation. Enjoy! 


	5. Chapter 5

The months passed in a blur, punctuated by doctors appointments, shopping trips and the occasional patient. Allison was put behind a desk for the majority of the time; neither she, nor Greg, nor Amy for that matter, was willing to risk one of their patients threatening the health of the babies. June arrived, and with it brought three events – the first being Amy's acceptance to Harvard as an official pre-med student. She entered the conference room on the day the letter arrived with a surprisingly less-than-ecstatic attitude.

"Are you nervous?" Chase asked, leaning over Foreman's shoulder to read the acceptance letter.

"No, I'm not nervous." Amy answered in a small voice, grabbing the letter back and reading it through for what felt like the hundredth time.

"So what's with the lack of enthusiasm? I mean, this is you we're talking about – you get excited when you beat Chase or me at I-Spy." Foreman asked. Amy surprssed a smirk and looked secretively over Foreman's shoulder into her dad's office. House and Cameron, as they were still referred to around the hospital, were sat on his sofa discussing the latest patient that the team had treated. She was a 25 year old woman, who had twin sons at home. They had managed to save the patient and she was making a full recovery but the case had hit just a little to closely for comfort – for both of them.

"Hello? Earth to Amy?" Chase snapped his fingers in front of Amy's face and she swatted them away.

"I got too excited about the twins. I forgot that I'm gonna miss most of their first eight years cos I'll be too busy with school." Chase smiled sympathetically, but Foreman – ever the practical one, answered almost instantly;

"Harvard isn't that far away? You'll be home on holidays, and it's not like you're gonna be the other side of the country. Stop stressing and enjoy the success! Harvard's not an easy school to get into."

"Except when you're an 18 year old genius." Chase added. Amy giggled.

"And," Foreman continued, "now that you have your car you could drive home some weekends." Amy had turned 18 a fortnight before Greg and Allison married; ten days after they found out Allison was pregnant. As a birthday present and a thank you for all the effort she had put into the wedding, they had bought her a car; which she adored.

"I didn't think of that." Amy replied. "Thanks." She smiled gratefully and each of the male doctors returned the grin. Amy had been living in New Jersey for almost two years and they had grown to think of her as not just a valued member of their diagnostics team but also as a kind of baby sister. Just like Allison had in the first few months that Amy had been working with them, they had grown to trust and like her, and she them.

On several occasions they had covered for her when she spent her lunch break hiding on the roof with one of the many hospital employees who found her startling intelligence coupled with her good looks just too attractive a chance to resist. Of course, Chase and Foreman had taken it upon themselves to 'discuss' with the lucky guy just exactly what would happen to him if he dared to hurt her.

"Just remember to come back and visit us when you're in town, ok?" Chase reminded.

"How could I not?"

* * *

June 15th saw the the second major event of the summer; a surprise baby shower. It was Greg's idea, which warranted most of the surprise. He and Amy had spent weeks arranging for friends and family to come down for the occasion; including both sets of expectant grandparents.

Neither Greg's nor Allison's parents had been exactly thrilled when Amy had inadvertantly let it slip that a baby was on the way before the wedding had taken place. Amy had struggled in the face of the four imposing older people, trying to explain that the wedding wasn't just to legitimise the child, or children as it had later transpired.

* * *

"I knew it," Gloria Cameron had sniffed, dabbing dramatically at her eyes with a hankerchief. Her husband, Michael Cameron had threatened to kill Greg, and then noticing Amy's shocked face had been quiet for the rest of the discussion. Greg's father had been outraged.

"I thought we raised him to have more sense. This is your fault." He accused his wife. "Putting up with his crap, letting him have his own way. No wonder he went and got his the girl pregnant."

Amy had listened, infuriated for what felt like hours, until finally she could take it no more.

"Firstly; Greg and Allison are in love. Secondly; she's barely 12 weeks pregnant and they have been planning this wedding since May, so it _can't_ be to cover up the baby. And thirdly; you're all being incredibly rude and selfish. You're going to be grandparents and you haven't even considered how fantastic that is!"

All four had accepted that silently, though they had taken it upon themselves to remind Amy that they already had a grandchild. (In fact, Gloria and Michael Cameron had six grandchildren, courtesy of Allison's older brother and younger sister.)

The icing on the cake had come a month after the wedding; when the couples had recieved copies of the ultrasound pictures in the mail; showing their grandson and grandaughter. Allison had conference-called with her mother and her mother-in-law for almost three hours that night, discussing Amy's choices for the names of the babies. Both had been more than ecstatic with the choices; it turned out that Allison's great great grandfather on her father's side had been named Benjamin, while Greg's great-aunt Elizabeth had (for reasons unknown to anyone in the family) been nicknamed Lucy for her entire life.

* * *

Allison had spent the majority of the shower in the lounge with her old school friends, and new friends from the hospital, cooing over adorable baby-sized clothes and shoes and swapping pregnancy and childbirthing tips with those of her friends who had children themselves. Blythe House had been particularly entertaining; sharing dozens of stories of Greg as a baby with the group.

Greg, however, had spent the shower in the kitchen with Wilson, Chase, Foreman and the two expectant grandfathers; smoking cigars and living up to the stereotypical image of fathers in the 1950s.

"This is just too cute." Allison said, holding up two romper suits; identical except for colour; one was yellow and one was pale green. They both had teddy bears embroidered on the front.

"Who are they from?" Greg asked, and Allison smiled as she read the tag.

"Foreman's girlfriend."

"She seemed nice." Greg said absently, surveyeing the pile of presents that was currently burying their dining table. On the top of the pile were two baby-sized stethoscopes; a joke gift from Cuddy. Her real gifts were two fluffy white teddy bears, one with a pink bow and the other a blue one. Even he had to admit that they were adorable. Allison shook her headwinced, pressing her hand against the side of her 9 months pregnant belly. She was only two weeks away from her due date, though it looked as if she was two months over.

"Ben or Lucy?" he asked, covering Allison's hand with his own. He marvelled at the way she was able to tell which twin was which.

"Both." Allison winced. "Kicking each other."

"Hey guys?" Greg said quietly, leaning down to speak to the bump. "You have to do me a favour, and stop kicking each other. It's hurting your mother. You have plenty of time to fight when you're out of there. Ok?"

"It might be sooner than expected." Allison said, leaning forward slightly and rubbing her back.

"What?" Greg almost yelped, alarmed. "It's too early, you have another two weeks to go."

"I don't think they care." Allison grimaced as an unmistakeable contraction swept over her.

* * *

And so the third major event of summer occurred. In the early hours of June 17th, after 27 hours of labour, Lucy Adele and Benjamin Matthew House were born.

* * *

Quick update...and I would LOVE reviews, as always. :) 


	6. Chapter 6

"I'm so exhausted." Allison said, flopping down on the sofa next to Greg. On the comfy chair adjacent to them Amy was curled up, half asleep. Somewhere above them, a baby cried quietly. All three fell silent as they listened, praying the cries would stop on their own. They didn't...instead they grew louder.

"It's Lucy." Amy mumbled.

"It's always Lucy." Allison replied, eyes closed. Greg heaved himself wearily off the sofa,

"I'll get her."

"Don't bring her down." Allison warned, "The book says..."  
"I know what the book says but the book never had children." He didn't mean to be snippy with her but he was so tired it just came out wrong. He leaned down and kissed her apologetically on the forehead, but realised that she had fallen asleep and not even heard him. He walked slowly up the stairs; the cries getting louder as he entered the twin's nursery. Lucy was squirming around in her crib, her blankets rumpled and her tiny hands were clenched into fists. Greg laid a hand gently on her chest, a gesture which instantly quietened her down.

"Hey..." he soothed, feeling her furious heartbeat slowing through her yellow sleep-suit. "What's going on?" Neither Greg nor Allison nor Amy talked to the babies as if they were just that, babies. "Hmm? What, is going on, with you?" Lucy's face broke into a little smile as she heard her father's voice. At five weeks old both she and Ben were advanced – though Ben smiled less than his sister. Greg joked that they both took after Amy, something which she adored.

The cribs had been positioned side by side, and Greg moved to check on his son. He was surprised to see Ben's eyes wide open and alert. When the baby saw his father's face looming over the edge of the crib he too broke into a smile.

"Did your sister wake you up?" Greg asked, reaching into the crib and letting Ben wrap his tiny hand around one finger. "I bet she did. She just wanted the attention, didn't she." Ben squeezed Greg's finger, almost as if he understood. "Yeah, that's what I thought."

* * *

"I miss them already." Allison moaned, checking her pager. She and Greg were sat in his office on her first day back after Maternity leave. Greg had gone back to work after the first month, and Allison had stayed at home for a further three months. When the twins had been born Allison had seriously doubted whether she could bear to be away from them every day, but since Amy had gone to Harvard a month before, at the beginning of September, she had felt herself going almost crazy without the company of another adult for the better part of the day.

"They're fine in the daycare." Greg told her, sliding the patient's file across the table to her. "Thought you might want to catch up before Foreman and Chase get in."

"Right. Ok." She took the file through to the conference room, making a pot of coffee (and a herbal tea for herself) whilst browsing through it. She jumped as her cell-phone rang. Scrambling around in her purse, which contained a million and one things she knew she would never need, but carried 'just in case', she found the phone and flipped it open.

"Hey." Amy's voice came down the line.

"Hi." Allison let out the breath she didn't know she'd been holding. She waved through the glass wall to Greg, indicating that it was Amy on the phone. "Are you ok?"

"Yeah, I was calling to check whether you were. First day back to work...how much do you miss them?" Even though she couldn't see her step-daughter's face, she knew that Amy was smiling.

"On a scale of one to ten? Eleven." She answered, swatting away Greg's hands as he tried to grab the phone. "Hold on a sec, your Dad wants to talk to you."

"Hi." Greg said, "Do you have class this morning?...yeah...I heard he's good...I will." He laughed at something Amy was saying. "Yeah I know. I will...I said yes, didn't I?...ok. Talk to you tonight...Love you too. Bye." Greg passed the phone back to Allison, who by now had finished making the pot of coffee and exchanged his red mug for her cell phone.

"Hey it's me." She said, "...what class do you have?...have a good day...ok...bye." Allison flipped the phone shut at the same time as Foreman and Chase entered the conference room, talking about the new nurse in paeds.

"Hey, Cameron!" Foreman said, quickly hugging his newly returned co-worker, and accepting the coffee she offered. She offered Chase his cup, and hugged him with one arm.

"It's good to have you back." He said.

"We missed you." Foreman added. Allison laughed,

"You saw me last week!" In the weeks leading up to her return to work Allison had brought the twins into the hospital every other day and left them for an hour in the daycare – something that a friend had recommended to get them used to the change in environment. She had spent those free hours pottering around the hospital, visiting different nurses and technicians who she hadn't been able to keep up with since the birth of the twins.

"Yeah but now you look like old Cameron." Chase said. Greg cleared his throat.

"And that's enough of the welcome backs, in case you had all forgotten we have a patient. 13 year old diabetic with pain behind the eyes..." He handed out patient files to Chase and Foreman, and as they studied the notes Greg caught his wife's eye. He winked.

* * *

"Patient presented in the clinic with double vision, drooping eyelids and unco-ordinated walking. Reflex is decreased and blood pressure is low. She was admitted yesterday following a hallucination, of which she now has no memory." Chase rattled off the symptoms from the file in front of him, then glanced around at the rest of the team.

"MRI results?" Allison asked, examining her copy of the file.

"Showed slight variation in the brain tissue but nothing significant." Foreman replied. Greg tapped his foot impatiently, and was about to say something when a familiar voice asked;

"Any evidence of a thiamine deficiency? It sounds like Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome." All four doctors turned to see Amy standing leaning against the doorframe. She was dressed casually, in a blue top under a black leather jacket, and a black knee length skirt matched with black high heeled shoes. Her hair, which had been waist-length when Allison and Greg had left her at Harvard, was now cut short – to her shoulders and it suited her perfectly. She smiled at them all, staring at her and walked casually across the room to hug her father.

"I didn't think you were coming home next weekend?" Greg said, holding her tightly.

"Yeah, but your anniversary is _this _weekend" Amy answered. "I thought I could take the twins and you two could go and celebrate somewhere." She turned to hug Allison, then Chase and lastly Foreman.

"How's school?" Chase asked as they all sat around the conference table.

"I love it!" Amy replied, studying the open patient file. "My professor's sick though, that's why I managed to come home a week early. You know, I think I'm right about this patient."

"Probably. Foreman, go run the tests. Chase, take Cameron's clinic hours for today. We're cutting out early."

* * *

"You've gotten so big! Yes, you have. " Amy exclaimed, holding Lucy tightly. The delighted little girl squealed and kicked her legs at her big sister. At nearly six months old both the twins had cut their first teeth, Lucy screaming blue murder most nights while Ben was a lot quieter. Amy passed Lucy to Allison, and picked Ben up from the play mat on the floor.

"And you Mister. How cute are you?" She sat the little boy on her lap and gently bounced her knees. A smile spread over his face as he jiggled up and down. A loud crash from the kitchen, followed by an even louder "Dammit" broke the easy atmosphere. Lucy jumped in shock and started crying, holding tightly to Allison's sweater as both women got to their feet.

Greg was standing in the middle of the kitchen, surrounded by broken china.

"Are you ok?" Allison called over the noise of Lucy's crying.

"Dishes were wet; hand slipped. Don't come in, I'll clear it up." Allison rocked Lucy up and down. Lucy, comforted, quietened down and contented herself with playing with a strand of Allison's hair.

"Take the kids back through, I'll be there in a minute." Nodding at her husband, Allison took Lucy through to the lounge, setting her down on the Winnie the Pooh play mat. Since having the twins, their usually stylishly tidy living room had become an extension of the nursery, with toys and infant-sized clothes everywhere. Even the cat wouldn't go in there anymore; she spent most of her time lounging on or under Amy's bed upstairs. Amy followed with Ben, and sat down with the little boy on her lap.

"Allison?" she said, eyes on the little boys face.

"Yeah?"

"Clap your hands." Allison looked confused at the instruction.

"Why?"

"Just, clap your hands. Loudly." Allison complied, clapping her hands together as loudly as she could. The noise made Lucy jump but Ben, from his position facing towards Amy, didn't react. Amy clapped her own hands in front of Ben, this time he jumped a little.

"Did you see that? Clap your hands again." Allison clapped her hands, drawing a reaction from Lucy but once again not from Ben.

"Oh my God." Allison said, standing and plucking Ben off of his big sister's lap. She held him against her. "Make a noise. Call him or something." Amy called out 'Ben! Ben! Ben sweetie, look at Amy." But the little boy didn't react; he simply continued playing with Allison's necklace.

"What's with all the clapping?" Greg said, coming into the living room. Allison spun around, Ben giggling quietly at the sudden movement.

"He doesn't hear." She said, tears forming in her eyes.

"What?" he asked, taking his son from her.

"He doesn't react to noises. Watch." Allison stood behind Ben, and called his name. The little boy didn't make any reaction. Tears spilled down her cheeks.


	7. Chapter 7

"I'm sure you both appreciate that this loss of hearing could just be the result of glue ear, in which case we can treat him easily, but I think it's best to cover all our bases. I'll schedule Ben for an audiogram first thing in the morning, and then once we get the results back we can know more. OK?" Dr. Abernathy, the paediatric audiologist, gently tickled Ben's stomach. The little boy giggled, which made the doctor smile.

"Don't worry until you have to." He advised. "In most cases, this type of hearing loss is totally treatable." Allison picked up her son and held him close to her chest.

"Should we have Lucy checked too?" She looked towards the corner of the exam room, to where Amy was sat with the little girl on her lap. Lucy was sleeping peacefully.

"From what you've told me her hearing is fine. If she has any problems then we can check her when they arise. For the moment I think our priority is Ben here." Ben giggled again as Dr. Abernathy pulled a face.

"Thank you." Allison said, shaking Dr. Abernathy's hand.

"No problem. Schedule the audiogram with Cynthia, and I'll see you tomorrow."

* * *

"So, how did it go?" Greg asked. He had been stuck in a meeting during Ben's appointment with the audiologist.

"Probably glue ear; he's scheduled for an audiogram tomorrow at 10."

"Well that's ok. We can fix that. Can't we Champ!" Greg said, taking his son from Allison and tickling his chubby little leg. The boy folded over with laughter, but made hardly any noise.

"I know he's going to be fine. I just don't like thinking he might not be." Greg gently kissed his wife.

"Are you ok to work?"

"Of course. Amy's going to take them both home."

* * *

"Well," Dr. Abernathy sat on the edge of his desk, surveying the file he held in his hands. "Ben's audiogram showed slight hearing loss, although it is difficult to tell with a six month old. However, the tympanometry test did show an increased level of fluid in the inner ear."

"He has glue ear." Greg said, bouncing his son on his lap. Lucy, who was sat on Allison's lap tried to lean forward and grasp the file Dr. Abernathy was holding.

"Exactly. Now, he doesn't seem to be in any pain or discomfort, but given his age I don't want to risk leaving an infection untreated so for now I'm going to prescribe a course of mild antibiotics, and then we'll have him back in for a check-up in three months or so."

"This is going to go away?" Allison asked, abandoning virtually all of her medical training and focusing only on her maternal instincts. They actually weren't dissimilar from her instincts as a doctor, just fiercer. Dr. Abernathy smiled.

"In most cases it clears up on it's own, the antibiotics are just to help him along." He answered reassuringly.

"Thanks." Greg said to the doctor, standing with his son.

"Schedule the appointment with Cynthia, and if there are any problems before then, don't hesitate to come back."

* * *

"Come on Ben. It's not that bad. Look, Daddy can take it." Greg pretended to take a spoonful of the antibiotics that his son had been prescribed. The little boy looked at him stubbornly.

"Yeah I wouldn't fall for it either." Amy said, standing beside her father and slotting Lucy into her highchair. "Look Ben." She took the medicine spoon out of her father's hand and held it in the air. "Here comes the train Ben!" She made a series of choo-choo noises as she brought the spoon expertly into her baby brother's now wide open mouth. Ben looked startled at the taste of the medicine but snapped his lips. Beside him, Lucy began making frustrated noises and reached for the spoon. Allison, who was bringing the twins lunch over, laughed.

"You really don't want any of this stuff." Greg said, taking the spoon and medicine bottle away from the twins. Both looked slightly outraged but were satisfied when Allison placed their bowls on the trays in front of them.

"Yum." Amy said, her voice tinged with sarcasm. "Green goo. Dee-licious." Lucy and Ben picked up their spoons; at 6 months they had already learned to feed themselves.

"Duba." Lucy answered, followed by "Nama," from Ben.

"Exactly." Replied all three adults.

* * *

"Look Ben...this one has your name on it." Amy said, sliding the brightly-wrapped present across the floor to where the little boy was sitting in Allison's lap.

"And this one's for Lucy." Greg passed a box to Amy, who had the little girl seated in her lap. Both babies patted the objects with slight caution, but helped enthusiastically when Allison and Amy began to tear the paper for them. The wrapping was discarded, joining the sea of ribbon, bubble-wrap and paper that had covered the dozens of Christmas presents the twins had already opened. The gifts were piled on opposite ends of the couch, one pile for Ben and the other for Lucy. They had gifts from 'Santa', from Allison and Greg, Amy, and doctors Chase, Foreman, Wilson and Cuddy had all given them presents too. Both sets of grandparents had spent Thanksgiving with the family, and had given Christmas presents then.

"Sa-Fa!" Lucy exclaimed, pointing at her gift.

"That's right it's a _doll_!" Amy grinned at Lucy, before turning her attention to Greg, who was holding a video-camera in one hand whilst recording what gifts were recieved from who with the other.

"_To Lucy, Merry Christmas from Uncle Eric and Aunt Libby._" She read off the card. "That's so cute."

"They gave Ben a monster truck," Allison added, indicating the red and black toy which her son was bashing contentedly against the floor, babbling nonsensically as he did it.

"That's my boy." Greg laughed, focusing the camera on his son's delighted face.

* * *

It was half past eight by the time Greg, Allison and Amy flopped down in the living room, absolutely exhausted from the twins first Christmas. People had been popping by all day; Wilson and Cuddy had both been invited to dinner, Chase and Foreman – each with their girlfriends – had arrived during the afternoon. By the time everyone had left, and the twins had been bathed and put to bed, it felt like they had all been awake for hours.

"We still have presents to open." Allison said, pointing to the piano where presents for Greg, Amy and herself had been stored out of the reach of the twins. Once they had realised that there were toys inside the brightly coloured packages, anything remotely similar had been the target of intense scrutiny as they tried to get it open.

"I'm too tired." Amy mumbled, eyes closed as she snuggled down into the over-sized armchair.

"You are never too tired for presents." Greg retorted, struggling to heave himself away from the welcoming comfort of the couch. "Here." He began taking presents off the piano, handing them to his wife and daughter. "Open, enjoy and then we can all go to bed."

"Who knew Christmas could be so exhausting?" Allison said, as she pulled the ribbon off of a small rectangular package. Inside was a black velvet box. When she opened it she saw a silver wrist-watch. It was an almost identical version of the watch she had inherited from her grandmother when she was a teenager, and had lost somehow during the move to college. She had been devastated at the loss.

"Greg!" she breathed.

"Is it ok? It's the closest I could find to the one in the picture."

"It's perfect." Allison leaned and kissed her husband on the cheek. "Now open yours." With the same care as Allison had taken with her present Greg removed the paper. He grinned and kissed her.

"Thank you."

"What is it?" Amy asked; from her position on the couch she couldn't see what was inside his present. Greg held it up; the newest version iPod nano. His old one had been rendered useless in an unfortunate incident involving two six-month-olds and a jar of baby food. He still couldn't understand how they had managed to get the baby food _underneath_ the screen of the gadget, but he had been too humiliated to take it to the shop. Amy laughed.

"And what about you?" Allison asked, noticing that in the time it had taken her and Greg to open one present each, all but one of Amy's gifts were opened and balanced on the chair around her.

"Sweater from Lisa, necklace and earrings from James, perfume from Robert and Carrie, set of three books from Eric and Libby. $100 from Nanna and Grampy and $100 from Grandma and Grandad." Amy pointed to each gift in turn. Nanna and Grampy was what Amy called Allison's parents, while Greg's were Grandma and Grandad. The twins called every adult over the age of 60 "Guff" which was both cute and embarrassing at the same time.

"Open the one from us." Allison urged, pointing to the final present. It was wrapped in purple, shiny paper, adorned with an artistically twirled silver ribbon. She pulled the ribbon gently and then hooked her finger underneath the tape, unwrapping the gift slowly. Laying on top of a black and white patterned book was an envelope, which she opened. Inside was a check, for $1000.

"Whoa." Amy gasped, staring at it. "This is way too much."

"As parents, it's generally us who get to decide what's too much. Don't spend it on junk, ok?" Greg said, smiling at the astonished look on his daughter's face.

"Promise." Amy answered, moving the check cautiously to one side and opening the black and white book. Inside, the pages were adorned with pictures, underneath each was a description, written either in Greg or Allison's handwriting.

"I hope you don't mind we stole your idea." Allison said, as Amy flipped through the pages, smiling at the pictures; Greg and Allison's wedding, copies of the twins' ultrasound photos, the baby shower, the picture the nurse had taken of all five members of the House family sat on Allison's hospital bed the day the twins had been born. There were more recent pictures too; of Ben and Lucy in the tub, laying side by side on the living room carpet with faces covered in spaghetti sauce. Pictures of the five of them, Amy with the twins, Amy with Greg and Allison. On the back page there was no picture. Instead there was a network of lines, with names, and dates underneath them. A family tree.

"This must have taken you forever!" she breathed.

"It was worth it." Allison replied.

* * *

And that's the end of Part Two. I'm thinking about a Part Three, but we shall see... :) 


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